Outdoor theater planned Saturday

Someone who wants to introduce a child to Shakespeare might consider attending a special performance at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, in Nipper Park at the Hannibal riverfront.

Bev Darrbev.darr@courierpost.com

Someone who wants to introduce a child to Shakespeare might consider attending a special performance at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, in Nipper Park at the Hannibal riverfront.The play, “Me and Richard 3,” was adapted from a Shakespearean play especially for young people but appeals to all ages, according to Sabrina Price, the play director and leader of the Hannibal-LaGrange University Theatre Department. “He adapts Shakespearian plays for young audiences,” Price said of the playwright.The five cast members are performing this drama at area high schools each day until Saturday, when they will give their last performance, she said. Cast members are HLGU students Josh Admire, Meghan Hosmer, Colten Penrod, Laura Losito and Jordan Hosmer.“We are calling it ‘Riverside Company’ because we are down by the river and have a lot of people coming and have made it interactive,” Price said. “It’s a new event. It is my goal we would be able to do this on a yearly basis.”We have great plays happening on our campus as well,” Price said. “We want people to know Hannibal, Missouri, is a great place to experience art. ... We will have a musical in the spring, ‘My Fair Lady.’"On Saturday, she said, “we want people to bring blankets and lawn chairs and sit and watch the show in the park. Admission is free, and the only cost is if they purchase food.”The 2 p.m. play is not the only event scheduled in Nipper Park Saturday. Other events, also led by HLGU students, are planned from noon until 2 p.m., when the one-hour play begins. Price explained, “when I was planning our fall program, I came up with the idea of doing theater in the park, and other departments are joining us to make it a three-hour event.“The nursing department is raising money from concessions for their medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic. They will be meeting the needs of Dominican women.”Also, Price reported, the HLGU Art Department will do face painting for both children and adults “who would like to have that done.”Two vocal groups from the HLGU Music Department will sing between noon and 2 p.m., Price said. They are the Chamber Choir and Praise Song.And Price’s New Edition theater group will be performing “little sketches around the park in various places from noon to 2 p.m.,” she said.

Nipper Park idealplace to walk

“Nipper Park is one of our most beautiful settings,” said Mary Lynne Richards, assistant supervisor for promotion and planningwith the Hannibal Parks & Recreation Department. “A lot of people walk there in the morning and during the day. “It’s a very scenic place, especially at this time of year. It’s a nice flat sidewalk for people to walk and push strollers.”Sharing some local history, Richards added that “Nipper Park was built in 1931 and was named after A.M. Nipper, who had been the Board of Public Works superintendent for almost 30 years.”In addition to the Oct. 13 events sponsored by HLGU in Nipper Park, a new “Pumpkins in the Park” event is planned from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28. On that date, Richards said, “people will bring pumpkins already painted, and we will have whoever goes through the pumpkin patch vote on their favorites.”Another free event in Nipper Park is ongoing, Richards said. This is the Nipper Park Scavenger Hunt, which starts at the stone entrance by the boat dock.The clues are available anytime at the HPR office, Hannibal Convention and Visitors Bureau, Hannibal History Museum or Chocolaterie Stam.This is one of two free scavenger hunts sponsored by the Parks & Rec Department, she said. One is called the Lighthouse Trail Scavenger Hunt. It begins at the Tom and Huck statue. The Clues at the HPR office, HCVB office, Hannibal History Museum or Paddlewheel Popcorn, 121 N. Main St.